Manufacturers of vehicle interior trim products need to meet certain safety standards for impact characteristics of the products. Some of the standards are imposed by the industry; others are imposed by various governmental agencies. For example, manufacturers engineer trim products that do not exceed certain head impact criteria ("HIC") values.
In order to meet the standards, manufacturers perform impact tests on representative products to ensure that the products conform. In some cases, the manufacturers have tested the products with set-ups that closely resemble the interior of a vehicle. This is not necessary and it adds a great deal of cost because at least portions of the set-ups, including sheet metal, may be damaged or destroyed in the testing.
Some companies have devised a simpler reusable fixture that allows for acceptable testing without the need to damage or destroy a set-up. It is believed that Dow, for example, uses a fixture having a support, a fixed plate mounted to the support, and a floating plate mounted to the fixed plate. This fixture also includes a spring or a fluid-type shock absorber fixedly disposed between the fixed plate and the floating plate. It is believed that the spring or shock absorber can be adjusted or calibrated so the test fixture can simulate different known impact characteristics (e.g. relating to soft or hard surfaces). However, this adjustment or calibration takes time and might involve a degree of error.